The leading national fuel poverty charity – National Energy Action (NEA) – has won The Energy Institute’s (EI) Nemex Renewables Innovation award 2007.
National Energy Action designed and implemented a unique wood-fuel project, which has helped to create a sustainable community in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester.
Five of the six families involved in the pilot project received a multi-fuel burning stove, with waste wood fuel as the primary heat source. Trafford Council spends up to £100,000 a year sending waste wood to landfill, and the network has now been developed to process this wood and use it to provide affordable heat in vulnerable households.
The householders have formed a pioneering wood fuel club with regular meetings to discuss ways to promote wood fuel throughout the region with the aim of developing a truly sustainable community.
Three of the families received a gas combination boiler with an integrated solar panel and is the first of its kind in the country. During summer, the solar panel can produce over 90% of domestic hot water for the property. In winter, the solar panel will preheat the water by as much as 30% meaning the gas combination boiler does not have to work as hard; cost as much; or produce as much carbon. The other three households are due to receive a standard solar thermal heating system with a dual immersion as back up.
Alex Fowler, NEA Project Officer, said: “NEA is delighted to showcase this sustainable approach to improving energy efficiency in people's homes and win this prestigious national award. The householders are really benefiting with a reduction in their energy bills.
“The funding was provided through a Defra grant as part of its target to eradicate fuel poverty in England by 2016.”
The six family households were provided with a package of innovative renewable energy measures to reduce their fuel bills and carbon footprint and to ‘fuel poverty proof’ their properties. The latter means that should any householder on the minimum income move into the property they would not need to pay more than 10% of their overall income on fuel.
NEA worked in partnership with Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council and Action for Sustainable Living ensuring that a range of key stakeholders could learn from the benefits of this approach. The wood burners were installed by GB Energy who are based in the North West; the three solar systems were provided by Alpha Boilers and three more were donated by Worcester Bosch.
Picture captions: Top right: Andy Lawrence, 36, of Carlton Street, Old Trafford, with his wife, Helen, 31, and children, Olaf, 5 and Leo, 2.
Above left: Asifa Ahmed, 45, of Leighton Road, Old Trafford, with her two children, Rahim, 21 and Maryum, 18.
Notes to editors
1. The Energy Institute (EI) is the leading chartered professional membership body for the international energy industry. For more information, visit www.energyinst.org.uk
2. NEA is the leading fuel poverty charity campaigning for affordable warmth in the homes of vulnerable people. Visit www.nea.org.uk
3. Fuel poverty is defined as the need to spend over 10% of household income on fuel costs to maintain adequate warmth for health and comfort.
4. A 1% rise in energy prices forces 40,000 households into fuel poverty.
For more information please contact David Bootle, NEA Press Officer, on 0191 261 5677 or 07984993579, or david.bootle@nea.org.uk